MAUI ISLAND SHELL

I came to Maui from California in 2000. I had a salon along with my brother and sister named "Just Us For Hair".My sister Caryn still has the salon. I also have a beautiful daughter named Shawnda. Who lives too darn far away. But comes to visit whenever she can and that is usually a couple times at least a year. I don't know what I would do without my baby girl.

"Then Maui called me" and you will hear that from people all over the world. I like many others just packed two suitcases and left everything behind knowing it would be alright and things would fall into place. After working in some high end salons and not feeling it as it should feel, I started my own company named "Mariah's Mane" as it is so windy here, so 'windy hair' seemed appropriate. I did hair and makeup for brides and did very well. My back started giving out on me, but I still carried 150 lbs up and down stairs for 14 years, before I was forced to retire. My son, who was my best friend, came to Maui numerous times and started me painting with him, inside, outside, we didn't care. He was very talented and did abstract paintings. I have "Lucky Number 7" in my gallery that is his. I was painting "Death followed by renewal."Deadicated to my mom. Jerry and I loved to paint together and we had a ritual of incense, candles and music before each painting set up. Then the unthinkable happened. My best friend, my painting partner, my teacher, my mentor, my son, passed away. I almost took my own life that day. I had to keep painting and so I did. I got my ideas from a lot of different things I saw but it was hard not to have my son with me. It was hard enough to pick up a paint brush and when I did it was non stop until I finished the piece.The painting "Crystal blues" is my son. He had crystal blue eyes."Mahalo Son for all your inspiration, and love, you will always be my painting partner".The one painting I did named "Attach-meant" was painted for Jerry. I was 16 and pregnant and everyone wanted me to have an abortion. I wouldn't. The painting has the cord and the eggs going into the womb. There is one at the bottom that has attached.the woman who is pregnant is me, the man with the child on his stomach is Jerry and of course the angel is Jerry, although I never knew why I had painted that when I was painting it. Now I know and it is one of my favorites if not my favorite. I just recently got this one for my daughter for her office. You'll see in my paintings an owl. That is my signature. It's BOX turned sideways my maiden name and our family signature, I just put an S in the B. I do not have any formal training except for a couple of classes on sculpturing. I just paint. Sometimes a card will inspire me, sometimes it's in the scenery. I paint for the fun of it.I hope you enjoy the paintings.